Author Jon Meacham explains to readers in "The Soul of America: The Battle for Our Better Angels" how our country has overcome trying times.

In the introduction for his new book, "The Soul of America: The Battle for our Better Angels," Pulitzer Prize-winning author Jon Meacham compares two scenes from Charlottesville, Virginia.

One scene is from 1948, when the late segregationist Sen. Strom Thurmond lambasted President Harry S Truman's civil rights program.

"The Soul of America: The Battle for Our Better Angels" by John Meacham

"The Soul of America: The Battle for Our Better Angels" by John Meacham

Submitted

The other scene is from 2017, when neo-Nazis and white nationalists marched with tiki torches, "determined to take our country back" in the words of former Ku Klux Klan grand wizard David Duke. A counterprotester, Heather Heyer, was killed.

Meacham, who is from Chattanooga and lives in Nashville, paints a portrait of two different eras when the politics of fear was prevalent.

He goes on to quote Truman, who once said, "You have to appeal to people's best instincts, not their worst ones."

Author John Meacham

Author John Meacham

Heidi Ross

This year, The Tennessean through its Civility Tennessee campaign has worked to create physical and virtual spaces where people can have conversations about tough issues not fearfully, but rather with an openness to listening, empathy and valid human-to-human exchange.

That is why we are hosting a book club discussion around Meacham's new tome on Saturday, July 28, from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m., at the downtown branch of the Nashville Public Library, which is sponsoring the event.

Please be prepared to discuss the book. The goal is to talk about the merits of Meacham's arguments, how we can talk to each other in the present polarized political environment and how we can create relationships with diverse people that will boost our communities.

Last year's book club discussion on Richard Florida's "The New Urban Crisis," as part of the "Costs of Growth and Change in Nashville" series, showed me that there is an appetite from members of the public for discussing complex problems and offering solutions in a setting where they feel they can make a contribution.

David Plazas is the director of opinion and engagement for the USA TODAY NETWORK – Tennessee and opinion and engagement editor for The Tennessean. Call him at (615) 259-8063, email him at dplazas@tennessean.com or tweet to him at @davidplazas. Learn more about Civility Tennessee at civility.tennessean.com.